The last time I saw the Swedish band Loney Dear, I thought it couldn’t get any better. I was wrong.
This time around Emil Svanängen was stripped down. In place of a drummer, Svanängen relied on his trust iPod. In another change from the previous performance I saw of him, he was joined by his friend Molly who supplied keys and beautiful harmonies to his already strong and ethereal vocals. With her addition, Loney Dear sounded more like an uptempo version of The Swell Season.
The highlight of the set was when the Svanängen tried to get the crowd involved in a singalong. All the audience had to do was sing, “Da da da da da,” but at first they seemed to struggle. “This isn’t going to work,” said Svanängen, insisting on his singalong. “Let’s try to make the impossible at SXSW.” He got his “impossible” and it made for a really fun show.
Loney Dear: website | myspace | @ Slowdown, Omaha | @ Orpheum, Boston | Dear John review
